Snow in VT before Christmas ?
 

Hi,

I am thinking of going for some XC skiing
to Killlington/Rutland,VT area a week before Christmas
(say, staring Dec. 18)

Do you know if there is a good chance they will
have a nice snow there ?

What are the weather patterns of these areas
(as well as VT/NH in general) before Christmas?

Or is southern Quebec [e.g. Mont Tremblant]
a much better bet for skiing weather ?


Thank you,
Oleg.

Oleg,
New England weather is notoriously unpredictable. Chances are good
that you will have snow in VT, but not guaranteed. However, Mountain
Meadows, right at the base of Killington, has a manmade loop already
open. Short, but good skiing.

Craftsbury, just to the north of there, is also a good bet for early
snow.

I am not sure, but I believe southern Quebec, is not any better, and
often worse, than VT for early snow. Remember, "Terrain creates
weather". VT has lots of big mountains to wring the snow out of the
clouds.

Rob Bradlee

--- Oleg Konovalov wrote:

Hi,

I am thinking of going for some XC skiing
to Killlington/Rutland,VT area a week before Christmas
(say, staring Dec. 18)

Do you know if there is a good chance they will
have a nice snow there ?

What are the weather patterns of these areas
(as well as VT/NH in general) before Christmas?

Or is southern Quebec [e.g. Mont Tremblant]
a much better bet for skiing weather ?


Thank you,
Oleg.







=====
Rob Bradlee
Java, C++, Perl, XML, OOAD, Linux, and Unix Training

In article ,
(Oleg Konovalov) wrote:

Hi,

I am thinking of going for some XC skiing
to Killlington/Rutland,VT area a week before Christmas
(say, staring Dec. 18)

Early snow in Vermont is unreliable, but here are some likely
possibilities.

(1) Your best bet may well be Prospect Mountain, near Bennington. It
often has snow early in the season, when the rest of the state has grass.

(2) Craftsbury (in the Northeast Kingdom) often schedules its first
race of the year in mid-December. Of course, that's optimistic, and the
Craftsbury Opener sometimes has to be cancelled due to lack of snow, but
it's worth inquiring at Craftsbury close to the time you plan to ski.

(3) Several ski areas in Vermont have snowmaking on a short loop,
ensuring good skiing even if early snow fails to materialize. Two such
places are Mountain Meadows on Route 4 near Killington and Mountaintop
Inn in Mendon, VT, near Rutland.

(4) If you're near Killington/Rutland anyway, it makes sense to check
out Blueberry Hill in Goshen. Provided there's enough snow, it's a fun
place to ski.

Do you know if there is a good chance they will
have a nice snow there ?

What are the weather patterns of these areas
(as well as VT/NH in general) before Christmas?

The pattern in Vermont is that we hope for the best, then we take
whatever we get -- it's pretty hard to make reliable predictions. Some
years we have skiable snow on the ground by Thanksgiving, while other
years we may have to wait until January to get on natural snow (of
course, there is always the 2K snowmaking loop at Mountain Meadows,
which opens tomorrow; they're holding a race clinic next weekend, so at
least their snowmaking loop should be in good shape). Often as not,
seeking early snow means settling for the snowmaking loop or driving to
Prospect Mountain.

Or is southern Quebec [e.g. Mont Tremblant]
a much better bet for skiing weather ?

Quebec is always worth checking out. Good luck!

As others have said, the chances of good snow in Vermont before
Christmas are not great. I'd say slightly better than 50%, less than
2-in-3. And, although it's still November, I'd say that this year
winter already seems to be behind schedule.

My general advice would be to wait as long as you can before making
plans. Depending on where the first storms come in, the best bets would
be Craftsbury, Stowe, or Bolton Valley in northern Vermont, or Prospect
Mountain in southern Vermont. If you're willing to consider places
other than Vermont, my next choice would be Lake Placid, then northern
New Hampshire, rather than Québec (unless you're willing to go as far as
Camp Mercier), although, if you're willing to wait until the last
minute, the best snow could be in Gatineau.

Good luck!

Lew Lasher
Cambridge, Massachusetts and Stowe, Vermont

On Tue, 30 Nov 2004, Lew Lasher wrote:

As others have said, the chances of good snow in Vermont before
Christmas are not great. I'd say slightly better than 50%, less than
2-in-3. And, although it's still November, I'd say that this year
winter already seems to be behind schedule.

My general advice would be to wait as long as you can before making
plans. Depending on where the first storms come in, the best bets would
be Craftsbury, Stowe, or Bolton Valley in northern Vermont, or Prospect
Mountain in southern Vermont. If you're willing to consider places
other than Vermont, my next choice would be Lake Placid, then northern
New Hampshire, rather than Qubec (unless you're willing to go as far as
Camp Mercier), although, if you're willing to wait until the last
minute, the best snow could be in Gatineau.

Once you start looking beyond the VT borders, Tug Hill and Old Forge
should also be considered. In any given snow drought either of these
can and often do have good snow before Lake Placid. Granted, Lake Placid
and Gatineau are more interesting places for what to do at the end of the
day when the skiing is done, but if the primary objective is finding snow
these should be in your hunt list.

-Mitch

Hey Oleg -

Screw New England, why don't you just jet across the country to Cali
and ski at Tahoe? We've been going for a month already. Skied on
super blue after a cold, 1 foot dump last weekend. The resorts are
easily accessible from the airport in lovely Reno, which also provides
ample nightlife.

Plus, in many places in Nevada, prostitution is legal. Not my thing,
but I thought I'd throw that in.

Ok, I am sort of kidding, best of luck in New England. If all else
fails, they may have the Weston Ski Track going by then.


bt

"Oleg Konovalov" wrote in message
om...
Hi,

I am thinking of going for some XC skiing
(...) a week before Christmas

The trails are not open yet, but they do have a one foot base already:
http://www.sepaq.com/En/Pages/CDN/De...ablissement=11

BarryT
(with only half an inch of snow in his own backyard)

"BarryT" wrote in message m...
"Oleg Konovalov" wrote in message
om...
Hi,

I am thinking of going for some XC skiing
(...) a week before Christmas

The trails are not open yet, but they do have a one foot base already:
http://www.sepaq.com/En/Pages/CDN/De...ablissement=11

BarryT
(with only half an inch of snow in his own backyard)

They will have trails at Mercier this weekend. Perhaps only 10 km or
so because there is still some running water in lower sections. I had
reserved a cabin and they called me at work this morning to apprise me
of the situation. Foret Montmorency is close by and they have tracks
because there was a race there last week and a Noram race coming up -
they have a snow gun, as the Sepaq gentleman explained to me this
morning. Gatineau Park is open for business so I plan my inaugural ski
tonight.

Chris in Ottawa

"Chris Pella" wrote in message
om...
They will have trails at Mercier this weekend. Perhaps only 10 km or
so because there is still some running water in lower sections. I had
reserved a cabin and they called me at work this morning to apprise me
of the situation. Foret Montmorency is close by and they have tracks
because there was a race there last week and a Noram race coming up -
they have a snow gun, as the Sepaq gentleman explained to me this
morning.
Chris in Ottawa

Montmorency opened on Nov 12 or 13, on natural snow. I guess the groomed
Mercier trails will be the ones around "Lac à Noël". If you find the choice
rather limited, check out Mont Ste-Anne. Not exactly next door, but they
claim getting 25 cm last Wednesday. At that the same time, if you come
across a young guy named Alex Harvey, watch him ski. This kid is truly
gifted and will one day be a bigger name in x-c skiing than was his father
Pierre.

BarryT